


Of Scorpion Kings, Cursed Bracelets and… Storks? Again?

by elletromil



Series: The Stork of Life [2]
Category: Kingsman (Movies)
Genre: Action/Adventure, Alternate Universe - The Mummy Fusion, Established Relationship, F/F, Getting Together, Horror, Humor, M/M, Multi, Mummies, Well The Mummy Returns Fusion more like
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-01
Updated: 2017-10-01
Packaged: 2018-12-27 16:19:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 13,142
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12084717
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/elletromil/pseuds/elletromil
Summary: Much later, once Eggsy would stop fearing for the lives of his friends and his own, he would agree that stealing from renowned archaeologists Merlin Dunham and Harry Hart was probably the dumbest thing he could have done. Not even because they had the means to find him and make his life hell, which they sure would, but because they also had the reputation to be trouble magnets and every digs of theirs came with a tale of curses and destruction.





	Of Scorpion Kings, Cursed Bracelets and… Storks? Again?

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Skyefallen](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Skyefallen/gifts).



> First thing first, a HUGE thank you to Dianyx who beta'd, cheered, test read everything for me, even through hurricanes. She is the best and she helped me figure out why I was stuck near the beginning of the story about 3 weeks ago. She is the best pandamuse one could ask for and deserves all the potatoes.
> 
> This story seriously got out of my control because I thought it would get around 5k like the prequel... As you can see, I was really wrong XD If you are familiar with the movies, you don't really have to read the first one and if you are not familiar with the movies and don't want to read the first one well basically Merlin and Harry fell in love while fighting Gazelle the Mummy. This story picks up a few years later.
> 
> Some of the dialogue do come from the movie and I claim no ownership over those words. And no ownership over the basic plot either.
> 
> Like always, participating in the reel challenge was tremendous fun even if I struggled a bit with the story at first, but that was my writing rather than anything to do with the challenge XD
> 
> Enjoy peeps ;)

Much later, once Eggsy would stop fearing for the lives of his friends and his own, he would agree that stealing from renowned archaeologists Merlin Dunham and Harry Hart was probably the dumbest thing he could have done. Not even because they had the means to find him and make his life hell, which they sure would, but because they also had the reputation to be trouble magnets and every digs of theirs came with a tale of curses and destruction.

At the time however, he could only think of the profit he would be making from reselling those pieces on the black market, a profit that would finally allow him to offer his mum and baby sister a real alternative to the hell of living under his stepfather’s roof.

And anyway, even in that hypothetical ‘much later’, he would have to admit that, even though he would have done it with less running and fighting for his life, he wouldn’t change anything about his misadventures.

Not if it brought him where he was now.

***

“-and I will have to double-check on the translation, but this new artifact could very well be a missing piece of the puzzle, the key to the lost Ahm Shere and-”

“And we’re home,” Harry interrupted Merlin, not unkindly, his eyes more fond than exasperated. “I am sure Eggsy has better things to do than to listen to your crazed ramblings, my darling friend. He’s already been kind enough to drive us here, let’s not bore him to death.”

He was only teasing and he fully expected Eggsy to do the same, but there was obviously something on his mind because it took him a moment to realise he had been directly spoken to.

“Hmm, what? Oh, no, no, it was no trouble. You must be pretty exhausted after all that travelling, while I’m just sitting on my arse all day at your house.” It wasn’t entirely true. Yes, Eggsy was technically in their employ only to make sure no one would rob the place during their numerous absences, but every time they came back, they could see that the boy had taken care of the house as if it was his own. Be it for the housekeeping or gardening, even though nothing in his contract stated he needed do either. But trying to make him realise he was going above and beyond their expectations seemed impossible. “It’s the least I can do. Now you can go rest for a bit.”

“I wish we would, but we’ve got those crates to move inside and Merlin will probably want to hit the books as soon as possible.”

Which turned out to be right away, because when Harry turned to look at his partner, the man was already halfway to the door of their house, leaving him with all the crates. He should have known that Merlin could never resist the sweet call of research long enough to help him out with the grunt work.

He would mind, but really, it was all part of his charm.

“I can- I can get them for you. You should follow him.” Without waiting for an answer, Eggsy was already lifting one of the boxes out of the car. It wasn’t that unusual for the boy to help them out, but Harry couldn’t shake off the feeling that something was wrong.

But he was also tired beyond belief and he doubted Eggsy would tell him anything if he hadn’t already said anything about a possible problem yet. Their boy was resourceful after all and had proven time and time again that he could take care of himself. Of course, polite society wouldn’t really call “taking care of oneself” the way Eggsy had been pickpocketing well-off gentlemen when they first met him, but then again Merlin had met Harry when he was in jail. He didn’t really have the high ground on this one.

So no, Harry wasn’t too worried about Eggsy. He didn’t think he would become so desperate as to start stealing again, but at least he had the skills and the smarts not to get caught while doing so.

The best course of action would be to help Merlin with his research so that they could both go to bed and then ambushed Eggsy about his weird mood together in the morning.

*

“Are you sure Merlin and Harry won’t mind me waiting for their return here?”

It wasn’t that Percival didn’t trust James, but it wasn’t really his place to extend hospitality during his brother’s absence.

“Pretty sure,” the other man dismissed his concerns with a shrug. “I mean, except if you plan on throwing a party, they wouldn’t really take kindly to that one.”

“Why would I-” Percival wisely elected to silence himself when he noticed James’ deceptively innocent expression. Some things he would rather not know.

“Anyway, can’t you tell me why you made the trip all the way to London?”

He was surprised that James had not pestered him more about it already, but it figured that now that he had showed Percival to the room he would stay in, he wouldn’t ignore his curiosity any longer.

“I would, but I remember your multiple vows to avoid mummies brought back to life.”

All traces of amusement faded from James’ face at his words and Percival suddenly remembered that he could be a very dangerous man when he stopped pretending to be an imbecile.

“You really think I’ll let you drag my brother in a fight with some cursed mummy and stay home quietly? Hell, even without his involvement, I thought you knew I would help you with anything.”

There was something hurt in his eyes and for a moment Percival felt like a monster. He was glad when James let him step closer and cup his cheek gently, leaning into the touch like he always did.

“I didn’t want to ask. It is not your fight.”

James rolled his eyes and finally pushed him away, but he seemed fondly exasperated rather than angry, which Percival decided to count as a win.

“That’s where you’re wrong. If it’s your fight, then it becomes mine too.” If Percival had ever doubted that James was more precious than any oasis in the desert, that would have suffice to make him see his lover truly deserved all of his adoration. “Now, I know I’m no substitute to either Merlin or Harry, but since we don’t know when exactly they’ll be back, how about you start telling me which mummy wants to destroy the world?”

He sat down on the bed, patting the mattress to indicate Percival should do the same. He barely hesitated before doing just so, not one to throw away a chance to be close to his beloved.

“Are you familiar with the Scorpion King?”

“I can’t say that I am…”

He wasn’t at all surprised by his answer. Merlin probably would be, but there was very little about ancient Egypt the man did not know.

But pointing this out wouldn’t bring them anywhere, so he started to relate the story as it had been told to him from his father who himself had been taught the tale by his own father and so on and so forth.

The Scorpion King had been a terrible ruler whose desire had been to conquer all that was known. After a long and vicious campaign of many years, he had finally been defeated and driven out into the sacred desert of Ahm Shere. There, after all of his warriors had fallen one after the other, he had pledged his soul to Anubis if only the god would spare his life and give him the power to defeat his enemies.

The god had accepted his offer, spared his life and put him in command of his army. The Scorpion King and his new army had descended upon his enemies like a flood, doing away with all that lay before them.

But his victory had been short, Anubis taking what was his due payment, the Scorpion King’s soul, forcing him to serve for all eternity. His army was returned to the sands of Ahm Shere from whence it came where they await to be awaken again.

“So that Scorpion fella, he’s the one that needs to be stopped, right?” James had listened attentively all along, but as soon as he had felt the end of the tale, he had interrupted Percival.

“What? No, that’s not it. _Gazelle_ is to be stopped from challenging the Scorpion King.”

For a long moment, James only stared at him with utter disbelief before he punched him on the shoulder.

“ _That_ ’s what you should have started with! I thought she was dead!”

“That’s not how her curse works, she cannot rightfully die.”

“Well, aren’t you supposed to make sure she stays buried in her desert then?”

Percival looked away, ashamed.

James was right of course, it was his sacred duty and he had failed utterly. But there had been so many men at the site and no time to call on other Medjai. Especially not with that bald man that had seemed to know exactly where to lead his team.

Before he could make any excuses however, they heard a big commotion in another part of the house and they were out of the room before they even realised they had gotten up from the bed.

*

This was stupid.

Stupid and desperate.

But then again, that was exactly what Eggsy was.

To think he had just started to believe that maybe, just maybe, he could actually make something of himself. That there was hope he could make a better life out of the cards life at dealt him with.

He should have known his luck always ran out in the end. That he couldn’t forever escape the shadow of his stepfather. He would do everything in his power to protect his mum and little sister, take them far away from his reach, but that was exactly how he would doom himself.

He felt sick as he started opening the crates from Harry and Merlin latest dig, rummaging through it for things that would be easy to carry but would also fetch a good price. It was no way to repay the men for their generosity and friendship, but he had no other choice.

They would hate him when they finally realised that he had betrayed their trust, but his family’s safety was more important.

He couldn’t even find it in himself to smile when he finally found what he was looking for, a golden bracelet in the form of a very detailed scorpion. Any other day, he would have gone to Merlin and demand to know everything there was to know about it and been roped into research while Harry grumbled good-naturedly about to do the rest of the unpacking alone.

For a moment, Eggsy was tempted to do just that, to pretend for another night that he really had a place besides these two amazing men, but in the end, his resolve stayed firm. It was better if he left them without a proper goodbye, like a thief in the night.

That was what he was after all.

A no-good thief who couldn’t even steal himself a bit of happiness.

He took a bracing breath before putting on the bracelet, knowing he had reached the point of no return. The men who had let him dream of a kinder future in a similar partnership as the one they shared would want nothing more to do with him now.

Before he could spent more time wallowing however, something absolutely shocking happened. As soon as the bracelet closed around his wrist, images of what he assumed was Egypt were projected in the air in front of his eyes.

It was all rather marvelous, but Eggsy doubted he would go very far before being arrested if he tried to sneak out with the thing still on him.

Unfortunately, he couldn’t seem to remove the piece of jewelry and for a terrifying moment, he thought he would have to go to Merlin and Harry where he would have no choice but to confess he was about to rob them.

By some lucky turn of the fates, the images suddenly disappeared before he could take a step in the direction of their shared study.

But he had no time for relief as a couple of men strangely dressed and yielding swords crashed into the room.

Hastily, he covered his wrist with his sleeve before yelling for help and throwing the first object under his hand at the intruders.

Thoughts of betrayal and heartache soon left his mind as he focused only on staying alive instead.

***

The bastards had taken Merlin.

Harry didn’t even care to know who they were, he just wanted his partner back and he would kill anyone standing in his way without remorse if it was what it took.

He was in such a frantic state that he was about to run after the car when someone grabbed him by the elbow, effectively stopping him.

Luckily for Percival, he had the reflexes to stop Harry from beheading him with the sword he was still holding, but it was a close thing.

“What the hell are you doing?” It didn’t even registered that as far as he knew, the other man should still be somewhere in the desert and not in his home. Only his partner mattered. “They’ve got Merlin!”

The man cursed rather impressively, even as his other hand shot out to stop James from attempting to go in pursuit of the same car.

“As stubborn as I know you to be, neither of you can outrun a car. We cannot-”

“-I’m not abandoning Merlin-”

“And I’m not suggesting that you do, just-”

Whatever he said next was drowned out by the honk of a car.

“Hey!” It was only when he turned to see Eggsy behind the wheel and he got hit by a momentary wave of relief that he realised that he had been worried for the boy too. After all, the last time he had seen him, he had still been unpacking the car when those men had invaded the house. “How about you stop arguing and get into the bloody car? We’ll lose them if you don’t hurry!”

That made way more sense than trying to run after the other car, but neither of them lost any time admitting it. Unfortunately, they lost sight of the car as they were getting seated, Harry in the passenger seat and the others two in the back.

However, before anyone could start cursing when Eggsy pointed it out, Percival reassured them. “It’s okay. I know where they’re going.”

“What, how?”

“I’ve been following them since they left Egypt with the creature. They’re going to the British Museum.” He barely finished saying the words that Eggsy was pressing on the gas and for once, Harry didn’t mind that the boy could be such a speed devil.

For a moment, Harry was reassured. The British Museum was known territory, he would have no trouble finding Merlin and make his abductors regret the day they were born. Then the other part of what the Medjai had said registered.

“The crea- You’ve got to be kidding me!”

“I assure you, I would not ‘kid’ you about such matters.” At least it explained why he was currently in London, even if Harry would have prefered the man stayed in his desert if it meant never having to hear of the mummy again. “Thankfully, Gazelle hasn’t regained her full powers yet, but I fear it won’t be long until she does.”

“Great, that’s exactly what we needed.” Merlin gone and a mummy on the loose. To think only an hour ago his biggest concern was to get his partner into bed before midnight.

“Gazelle? Isn’t that the mummy you’d killed some years ago?”

“Killed? No, Gazelle cannot be killed. We merely stopped her and and put her back in her eternal prison. But she’s been freed again and she wants revenge.” On whom, it wasn’t necessary to say.

“Who freed her?” It was a perfectly sensible question and in fact, it had very little to do with why Harry was now staring at James so intently. No, the reason he was looking at him as if it was the first time he had seen him in his life was because he had just realised that he seemed rather calm about the news of the mummy’s return. And also, that like Percival, he had very little reason to have been at the house during the attack.

Which probably meant he had been the one to bring Percival there in the first place since he had a key to the place and he had decided to stay once he had learned why the Medjai had travel to London.

At least he hoped for James’ sake that it was the reason and not because he had been planning another one of his party. If he wanted to destroy a house so much, he could get his own.

“I don’t know who he was, but he seemed to know exactly where to look. But that is not the worst. They’re after the bracelet of the Scorpion King and I saw one of the man leaving with its chest.”

Besides him, Eggsy made a strange sound, but he paid it no mind.

“Why?” He didn’t really care about the mummy right now, but he had calmed down enough that he realised that any missing information could turn out to be dangerous. Who knew what powers that bracelet had.

“Once she puts it on, she will have a week to follow its clues to Ahm Shere so that she can challenge the Scorpion King and, if she defeats him, gain power over Anubis army. Then, she truly will be invincible.”

The car abruptly skidding into a stop in front of the museum derailed the conversation for a moment, but Eggsy spoke up before they could leave and go to rescue Merlin.

“That bracelet, does it look like this?” He rolled up his sleeve, revealing the gold scorpion wrapped around his wrist.

“How did you get this?” Harry frowned at James’ accusatory tone, but really they had far more pressing matter to address than his sudden lack of manners.

“I was looking at it when they barged into the house.”

“Clever boy,” Harry couldn’t help but praise and was rather surprised when Eggsy didn’t smile at the remark like he expected him to.

“Foolish boy, more like. If the wearer of the bracelet hasn’t made it to Ahm Shere in the allotted time, they will die.”

“Fuck…” Even from the side, Harry could see that Eggsy didn’t look so much terrified as he looked resigned and that alone was worrisome.

“We won’t let anything happen to you.” Gently, he took Eggsy’s hands from around the wheel and for once, didn’t stop himself from doing what he really wanted as he pressed his lips against his knuckles tenderly. “I promise we’ll keep you safe. As soon as I get Merlin back, we’ll get you there.”

He had thought Eggsy would wrench his hands away, but instead, he gripped tight.

“What do you mean ‘I’? ‘We’! I’m coming with you!”

“I don’t think so. It’s far too dangerous. You and James are staying in the car to ensure we have a quick getaway.”

James looked over sharply, but agreed with him even if he didn’t seem happy to do so. “He’s right Eggsy, you’d be in well over head. Percival and Harry know what they’re doing.”

“But Merlin-”

“-wouldn’t appreciate you getting injured or worse trying to help him.” Not that Harry would like it any more. They had both grown extremely fond of the boy after all. “Please Eggsy.”

He knew he had won when Eggsy let out a small gasp at the plea, but waited until he nodded before finally leaving the car, but not before pressing one last kiss on the boy’s hands.

*

When Merlin woke up tied to a slab of rock, it took him a moment to realise he wasn’t having a nightmare and that Harry wouldn’t be shaking him awake any time soon.

The only silver lining he could see to his situation was that at least, he didn’t have to stare at a mummy this time. Of course, the moment the thought crossed his mind was the moment one stepped into the room, closely followed by a bald man that was strangely familiar.

“Did you get the bracelet?” The voice was unmistakable, the very one that had been haunting his nightmares these past few months. _Gazelle_. She wasn’t entirely regenerated yet, but she didn’t seem to care, all her attention focused on the man at her side. She had not even noticed Merlin’s presence in the room, not that he felt too bad about it. “We’ll need it to lead the way.”

The unknown man waved a hand in dismissal before grabbing Gazelle’s hand.

“Of course we got the bracelet. They’re opening the chest as we speak. But I’ve got you something even better.” He seemed giddy with excitement as he led her to Merlin.

“Oh my Prince... You spoil me,” she pressed a kiss on the man’s lips, before turning her attention on him and by doing so, missing the grimace of revulsion on her partner face. Merlin didn’t miss it however and couldn’t help but frowning in puzzlement. It wasn’t that he didn’t understand the distaste the stranger could feel, but if he truly was Prince Valentine he would have expected the man to be above such things. Merlin himself remembered all too well his near-kiss experience with the mummy and only felt discomfort that Gazelle hadn’t been seeing _him_ when she had been looking at him with such open devotion.

However, he soon forgot about it when Gazelle stepped even closer. Carelessly, she grabbed him by the chin, smiling coldly at his wince of pain when her nails digged into his skin.

“I’ll have much pleasure watching you die.”

She snapped the ropes that had kept him tied to the rock as if they had been but a loose thread from a shirt, but was careful not to free his wrists. She then picked him up as if he weighed nothing more than a feather. She didn’t even seem to register his thrashing about, calmly walking up to the fire that was burning in a corner of the large storeroom.

The flames were high and even from a distance, Merlin could feel their heat on skin. He shuddered when he realised the fate that would await him if he couldn’t break free.

But he was powerless against the mummy hold on him. He could only stare at the fire with horror, praying all to the gods he knew of for a miracle.

Someone must have been listening because the moment Gazelle threw him at the fire, Harry erupted from the flames and got him, slipping a knife in his hands so that he could cut himself free while he was shooting at the nearest lackeys. At the same moment, a rain of bullets fell on Gazelle and her followers from above.

As he struggled with his bounds, he could see Gazelle turn with terror contorting her face until she spotted Valentine running away. However, since he finally freed himself, he didn’t wait around to found out what reaction the man’s cowardice would entice in the mummy. Instead, he lost no time grabbing Harry by the collar, trusting whoever was shooting from the upper floor to cover their retreat.

*

“So why do you really have that bracelet?”

James didn’t really want to get in a confrontation with Eggsy right now, but he also couldn’t stand the heavy silence that had fallen in the car as they had watched Harry and Percival disappear inside the museum. With any luck, he would be wrong about his suspicions and would merely owe the boy an apology once everything would have settled down.

Unfortunately, Eggsy’s next words cut short his sudden _elan_ of naivety about human nature. “I was stealing it.”

“You fell in with your stepfather’s crew again?”

“They had me investigated?” Eggsy scoffed, his lips curling with disgust and James would feel bad, except he really didn’t.

“Yeah, no, you don’t get to be all offended, not when you just stole from them.” It might sound rich coming from him, but he had cleaned up his act in the few years since their first encounter with the mummy. He might never pass for an upstanding member of society like Merlin and Harry, but he was no petty thief at least. “But if you must know, no they didn’t. I asked around of my own volition when they brought you in. I didn’t say anything, because it looked like you truly wanted to change your life around, but I guess I was wrong.”

He didn’t add anything more, having said his piece. It wasn’t really his place anyway, it wasn’t his trust that Eggsy had betrayed. He had liked the young man of course, but Harry and Merlin had been the ones so obviously charmed by his cheeky grins and what had looked as an honest interest in their work.

He thought the conversation would end there, but apparently, something he had said had struck a chord, because Eggsy pressed his head against the wheel in a rare show of vulnerability.

“He’s beating my mum and he’s started slapping my baby sister around. They’re safe for now, but they need to leave London as soon as possible. That’s why I stole the bracelet.”

For a moment, James could only stare at the sloped shoulders in front of him, before he blurted out, “dear god boy! Why didn’t you asked them for help?” It didn’t even cross his mind that he could be lying. No one could fake this level of desperation, fake being this much broken up. 

Whatever spell had fallen on Eggsy, his outburst clearly shook him out of it and when he turned toward him, he look like the brash and proud young man he had first met a few months ago.

“Because I’m not a charity case!”

He nearly laughed in disbelief, but stopped himself just in time.

“If you think that’s why they help you, you’re dumber than you look.” Admittedly, insulting him wasn’t any better than laughing at him, but Eggsy clearly needed some truths spelled out to him.

“Fuck you.”

“Such _répartie_ ,” he rolled his eyes, but decided to take pity on him, if only because he knew Merlin wouldn’t be happy if James were to antagonise him needlessly. “Eggsy, they’ve been helping you for the same reason I suspect you’ve stayed to help when you realised Merlin was in danger. The same reason you wanted to follow Harry inside even though any sane person would run in the opposite direction of a mummy.”

Eggsy blushed but didn’t looked away, crossing his arms around himself defiantly, as if he was daring James to continue. He nearly rolled his eyes again, but instead returned the stare placidly. He knew he wasn’t wrong, but it wasn’t up to him to discuss those things with the boy. At least now, he no longer had any doubts as to Eggsy’s feelings for Harry and Merlin.

The sound of thunder in the distance startled them out of their little staring contest and Eggsy darted a glance in the direction of the museum before throwing his door open. “They’re taking too long, I’m going in.”

“Eggsy, we really shouldn’t-”

“If you think i give a toss about what I should or shouldn’t do, you clearly haven’t been asking the right questions to the right people. You can stay here if you want, but I’m not!.”

For a long minute, James just looked at him go, cursing under his breath when he finally followed him. They sneaked inside, only to run headfirst into some of those freaks who had been at the house.

James had always had the worst of luck.

***

“You were supposed to keep him in the car!”

They had regrouped at the car, but Merlin felt very little joy at having been saved now that Gazelle had escaped them, this time with Eggsy in her clutches. However, even if he understood Harry’s anger and desperation, it was obviously misplaced and he quickly stepped between him and his brother before the situation could escalate anymore.

“And how exactly was I supposed to do that?” James spited out, never one to take abuse without giving back as much as he got. “Tie him up? Sit on him?”

“Yes! No! I-” Before he could say something he could really regret, Merlin walked up to him and gently took his head between his hands.

“Harry, you need to calm down.” He was surprised by how composed he sounded, when he felt like coming apart at the seam by his own worry for Eggsy.

“Merlin…” his voice broke on his name, making it sound like a sob. With his eyes locked with Harry’s, he could see that it wasn’t so far from the truth and only their audience stopped him from pulling his partner in a tight embrace. “I promised we would keep him safe… And now we don’t even know where he is!”

For the first time since he had met him, Harry looked ashamed, nearly defeated and Merlin’s heart broke at seeing his proud lover brought so low. He wished he could reassure him, make him understand that only Gazelle was to blame, but unfortunately, he knew only Eggsy could absolve Harry from the crime he thought he had commit.

If he wasn’t already willing to sacrifice his life in saving Eggsy for his own selfish reasons, seeing Harry like this would be enough to make him move heaven and earth and the underworld too just to find their boy again.

Fortunately, with allies like Percival he didn’t have to go to such lengths.

“Don’t despair too soon friends. Others are keeping tracks of the creature’s movement for me as we speak. We can still save him and the world.”

It seemed to shake Harry out of his misery and he pressed their forehead together for a second before turning to the Medjai, determination shining bright in his eyes.

“What are we waiting for then?”

***

“What was the first clue?”

Eggsy didn’t really know what he expected the mummy to look like, but it really wasn’t the gorgeous young woman standing in front of him. Not that her beauty was the first thing one would have noticed unless one were a fool. No, the first thing he had noticed had been the aura of _power_ around her, the quiet confidence in which she held herself, as if she knew she could lay waste to entire empires and merely chose not to do so because of some private clemency.

And from the tales he had heard of her, he couldn’t be that far from the truth.

Someone else might have cowered before her and told her everything she wanted to know, but no matter how terrified he was of her, that just wasn’t who Eggsy was. He had been in some state of fear or another since his mum had taken with his stepfather after all. Being afraid was very much a part of himself.

Anyway, it wasn’t like he had any idea of what he had seen when he had put on the bracelet.

“Fuck if I know,” he shrugged carelessly, throwing in a smirk for good measure.

Gazelle looked amused for some reason even if her partner Valentine seemed infuriated by his answer. He was about to try and push more of the man’s buttons to see if he could make him crack, but before he could even open his mouth, Gazelle grabbed him by the throat and shoved him against the wall of the train carriage.

“You test my patience, which really isn’t a good idea. Killing you might not be an option, but I _will_ make you regret trying to keep secrets from me.”

He crashed on the floor when she finally released him, where he stayed gasping for air. He was no stranger to being beaten thanks to Dean, but his stepfather had absolutely nothing on her. It was clear that unlike him, she was always in control of herself and never lost focus of her objective. If she was cruel, it was because she saw no other way to achieve her goal, not because she was a bored little sadist.

Loathe as he was to do so, he was forced to respect her. She was no ordinary bully and he would have to change his game if he wanted to survive long enough for Merlin and Harry to get to him.

It might be foolish of him to think they would come, especially if James had told them about his betrayal of the trust they had placed in him, but he knew the men. Even if he hadn’t had all the facts at the time, Harry had _promised_ to keep him safe. He was a man of honor. He would never go back on his word and wherever he went, Merlin would follow.

“Look, lady,” he croaked when he stopped feeling like his lungs would explode, “I am not keeping secrets. I really don’t know! I’ve never been to Egypt, all the pyramids look the same to me!” It was already more than he had wanted to say, but with any luck, they would lose so much time stopping at every pyramid that the others would catch up with them.

Of course, Gazelle wasn’t one to leave anything to luck.

“Describe them to me. Now!” He thought of lying, but he had no doubt she would _really_ hurt him if she felt any deception on his part. And while he didn’t care about what could happen to him, he would do anything to stop Merlin and Harry from feeling guilty for something they had no control over.

He did his best to remember what the images had looked like, describing them clumsily the way he had heard Merlin wax poetics on the scenery in Egypt and as he did so he came to the conclusion that he knew those pyramids after all.

“Giza,” Gazelle whispered after a moment, a little smile curling on her lips, confirming Eggsy’s suspicion. He had apparently learned more than he thought during in his time listening to Merlin.

He didn’t put on a fight when he was dragged back into his compartment-cell, knowing that this wasn’t a good fight to pick. He needed to keep up his strengths for later for the right moment, when he would be the most useful to Harry and Merlin.

Feelings tears of frustration welling up in his eyes, he pressed his face into his palms and bit his lower lip. Now was not the time to break down, no matter how much he missed them. He would have plenty of time to do so after being saved and brought back to London only to be cut off from their lives forever.

*

The moment they had set foot in Egypt, a Medjai had come up to Percival and they had had a hurried conversation before the man had disappeared into the crowds again.

Percival had looked most upset when he told them that the creature was at the pyramids of Giza which James had found weird at first. After all those pyramids weren’t that far off from Cairo and they could have made quick time of it by horse, maybe even get there before could leave again.

Then he had told them the rest, how Gazelle and her associates had managed to commandeer a train somehow and there would be no way a horse could compete with that.

For once however, James had been the one with a solution to their traveling problems. Or rather, a connection that would solve their problems.

Roxy didn’t seem too pleased to see him when they stepped into the courtyard, but she didn’t try to run away.

“Hello Roxanne, I’m here to cash in my favor.” He smiled his most charming smile for her, but she only scoffed before turning away and motioning at them to follow her.

“Come on then, my balloon is that way.”

“You’re not even going to ask us what we want?” Harry was too far for James to elbow him into silence, but even if she threw a suspicious look over her shoulder, she kept on walking.

“A favor’s a favor. Anyway, I always knew I was going to die young.”

He started to protest that the situation wasn’t as dire as that, but his mouth clicked shut when he realised that he couldn’t in good conscience pretend otherwise. James might have sweet talk a lot of people in his time, but he had never outright lie and he wouldn’t start with Roxy. He respected her far too much for that.

*

Valentine stomped off of the train, smiling coldly when all of his men gave him a wide berth. He was far from happy that they would have to walk the rest of the way, but he consoled himself that he wouldn’t be the only one suffering. Not Gazelle however. The High Priestess seemed totally impervious to mortal struggles and he tried to suppress the envy and jealousy he felt at her abilities.

She had died and come back to life multiple times to gain them, going against the laws of life instead of having been reincarnated like himself. She had made sacrifices he wasn’t ready to make at all and she deserved his respect.

Respect he gave her willingly unlike that little rat who had stolen the bracelet from them. Oh, his amused smirk had gotten dimmer as they made good progress into their treasure hunt, but he still showed more irreverence than he should towards Gazelle. As if he truly believed that Hart and Dunham would come and save him.

Now maybe he wasn’t mistaken in that, but even if they did catch up to them, they would be utterly helpless against Gazelle’s powers. She would crush them like the little scarabs they were.

“My Prince,” he jumped when Gazelle slinked beside him, linking their arms together.

He shivered at her cool touch, remembering all too well how her smooth skin had felt like old parchment before she had fully regenerated. That wouldn’t have been so bad if it hadn’t been for the little critters he had seen slithering under her skin at the time and he fought a wave of nausea as he wondered if they were still there.

Unaware of his inner turmoils, Gazelle started to lead him away in direction of the ruins they would be staying in for the night. “It is time to reunite you with your soul,” her gaze was filled with adoration when it fell on him and only her strong grip on his arm stopped him from running away.

It wasn’t that he felt no curiosity about his past life, simply that he didn’t think it necessary to remember. He was here now, wasn’t it enough?

Apparently not. He would protest, but he refused to believe that Gazelle didn’t know what she was doing. If she felt it was a necessary evil he would have to go through, than she must have been right.

She took him on the edge of a small pool and asked him for the Book of the Dead he had been safeguarding since the dig in Hamunaptra. Unwilling to show her the doubts he was starting to have, he gave it to her without hesitation before sitting by her side. Her confidence when she turned the pages to the spell she needed and started the incantation calmed him in turn.

He was her lover reincarnated, of course he was safe in her hands.

He felt a bit less certain when the wavery form of his old soul skimmed over the air until it could engulf him entirely, sinking into him to the marrow of his bones. But with Gazelle at his side he couldn’t escape and he struggled not to show his revulsion until he lost himself into the memories-dreams.

He relived his past life, how he had schemed with the High Priestess Gazelle to kill his own father so that he could become Pharaoh instead of his half-brother, Merlin. Relived their failure when Merlin had witnessed their crime and set the guards at their pursuit.

Relived the pain and terror when he had fallen prey to their swords and spears, the last thing he remembered being Gazelle’s vows to bring him back to life echoing in his mind.

He didn’t know how long his trance-like state lasted, for it felt like a lifetime, but when he came back the moon had barely started its descent in the sky. Gazelle was still kneeling beside him, gently stroking his back and it took everything that he had not to recoil from her contact, the memory of steel piercing his flesh still so vibrant in his mind.

“This time my Prince, I won’t fail you.”

She smiled sweetly when he nodded his acknowledgement, her eyes closing in contentment making her miss the grimace of disgust that twisted his face before he had himself back under control.

*

Merlin jerked awake lying on top of Harry, much closer to the edge of the ship than he would have preferred.

“Harry? What are you doing?” He sat up and hastily crawled closer to the middle of the deck, lest he fell to his death.

“What I’m-? _I_ should be the one asking that! You were about to walk off the balloon as if you thought you could fly!” He hastened behind him, sitting much closer than he usually would in any kind of company, the fingers of one hand clenching to the fabric of his trousers. “Don’t look at me like I’m crazy, you scared us all.”

He only now realised that the three others were all looking at him warily, James tensed as if he was a moment away from jumping on him and keeping him pinned on the floor.

“I’m sorry, I must have been sleepwalking…”

“Well mate, that’s clearly not a good idea when we’re that high in the sky.”

He started telling their pilot that one couldn’t control sleepwalking, only to cut himself when he suddenly remember the dream he had just had. “I was dreaming-”

“Again? It wasn’t enough that they led you to that damned bracelet, now they’ll get you dead!” Harry finally gave up any pretense that he wasn’t clinging to Merlin and he threw a challenging glare at Roxy as he wrapped both arms around him. The young woman just raised an eyebrow, but Merlin had a feeling it was more about Harry’s defensiveness than because they were hugging in front of her. After all, she hadn’t said anything about the way James and Percival had huddled up together when the night air had grown cooler around them.

“I don’t think so. In fact, I’m pretty sure they won’t be an issue anymore.” Uncaring about their audience, he leaned into the warmth of Harry’s embrace, but his shivering had very little to do with the cold of the night.

“What makes you say this?”

“Because I finally remember what I was supposed to.”

“What you were-” Harry leaned back just enough so that he could look into his eyes, his worry etched in every line of his face. “Merlin, my darling friend, you still make no sense.”

“I was dreaming about the past, about being witness to the Pharaoh’s murder at the hands of Valentine and Gazelle. Of being the one who ordered the guards to stop them and sentenced Gazelle with the Hom-Dai curse…” Only Percival seemed to realised what he was implying, gasping softly before muttering a small prayer. “I think that, much like Valentine, I might be a reincarnation.”

“That’s crazy-”

“Really? _That_ ’s crazy?!?” Merlin hadn’t meant to snap at Harry, but after everything they had lived through, he would have thought the man to be far more open-minded. “We’ve got a mummy brought back to life, _again_ , helped by her reincarnated dead lover as they try to get to the lost Ahm Shere so that she can defy the Scorpion King -- a bloke who has been dead for millennia by the way -- just so she can gain power over Anubis army and rule the world, but you draw the line at me maybe having had a past life too?”

He tried to get away, but Harry wasn’t letting him go. He was about to yell at him so more when he realised that his partner was shaking, even if he seemed to be doing his best to ignore it. Searching his eyes, he finally noticed that his reaction had more to do with fear than any belief that Merlin was going off the deep end.

“Oh Harry,” without saying anything more, he pulled him closer, letting him hide his face in the crook of his neck. Sensing they were intruding on a private moment, Percival and James turned their back to them, even if Merlin had no doubt they were still discussing his latest revelation. As for Roxy, the young lady was currently far more intent on her piloting through the dark of the moonless night than whatever was happening on her balloon.

“I’m sorry, it’s just- It never seems to end.” The words were mumbled against his skin and they would have been hard to understand if Merlin wasn’t already familiar to night-time confession of guilt and distress.

“I know, I shouldn’t have gotten angry. You’re not that wrong after all… It _is_ crazy.” Mummies, curses, reincarnations… If it wasn’t happening to them, Merlin would have thought it all the ravings of a lunatic.

Unfortunately it was all very real and he would never forgive himself for having endanger Eggsy. He should have known that with his boundless curiosity the lad would find the bracelet in the crates and put it on, even if he had not been trying to rob them at the time. He should have never left it without properly securing it, not after what had happened with the Book of the Dead that last time.

His oversight could very well cost the lad his life and he knew he would never be able to live with that guilt and neither would Harry. He had wormed his way inside both their hearts and they had no desire to chase him away, which had been part of the reason they had never told him. It had seemed like such an unbelievable gift already that he accepted them without a word and came to trust them enough to offer them his friendship.

Or at least he had thought Eggsy trusted them. Apparently, he hadn’t believed he could come to them in his time of need and wasn’t that just one more way they had failed the lad?

He tightened his hold on his partner unintentionally, but Harry didn’t protest, simply pressed even closer. 

“I just hope this doesn’t mean you’ll have your own dead lover showing up to demand you rule the world with them.”

It was a poor attempt at a joke, but maybe it would have work if only his thoughts hadn’t been turned towards the dangers Eggsy was currently facing all alone by its fault.

“There is only one other person in the world besides you that would make me seriously consider it and he better not be dead.”

“He’ll be okay, he’s strong…” Merlin wasn’t sure if the words were meant to reassure him or Harry himself, but either way, they held very little comfort. He knew that Eggsy was strong, but Gazelle was even more so and soon she would have no used of him anymore.

He just had to trust that they would get to him before she tried to get rid of him. 

***

Roxy wasn’t entirely sure why James and his little disparate group of friends were chasing after that Gazelle lady and to be honest, she wasn’t entirely interested in knowing. It wasn’t that she didn’t care however, more that she knew trouble followed James wherever he went and was far more intent on staying alive than she was on listening their crazy talk about mummies, reincarnation and whatnot. 

From anyone else, she might have believed they had stayed too long under Egypt’s unforgiving sun, but they did not look like the usual lunatics. Anyway, since she had been following the pet bird of the one named Percival from location to location, she didn’t feel like she had a place to talk. 

Especially not when said pet bird proved to be a fine tracker and she started seeing the forms that were undeniably human in the distance. Not that there were any assurance that they were indeed the ones James and his friends were after, but Roxy had never believed in coincidences. 

She was kind of relieved to think her travel was soon coming to an end. She didn’t mind much the mountainous terrain around the Nile that had taken up the sand’s place, but the jungle that was coming up was another story entirely.

Luckily, it seemed like her balloon would catch up with those people quite soon and she wouldn’t have to explain why she refused to go any further than the edge of the jungle.

Not only that, but now that they wouldn’t have to make unnecessary detours to various sites, they might even get back to Cairo in half the time it had took them to get here. Which in turn meant she wouldn’t have lost that much business.

She allowed herself a smile and gently berated herself in the privacy of her own mind for thinking James would lead her to her death. She should know better than to be so pessimistic. 

That was of course the moment a wall of water that look horrifyingly like a face rose up from the air and started chasing the balloon, the mouth giving the impression it would gobble them up.

She evaded it for a time, but the walls of rock around them made any escape impossible and she soon yelled a warning to her passengers to cling to something as she started to plunged her balloon into the water herself.

The ship wouldn’t survive the crash, but a fall into the water was better than being thrown against a mountain and she had hope that the water face would lose its interest in them once they were floating on the Nile.

Her bet paid off and soon they were coughing out water on the bank of the river, a bit bruised but thankfully all alive, even if they had lost their advantage to the bottom of the Nile.

They would have no choice but to walk now and she made sure that James knew _he_ was owing _her_ this time around and that he better be prepared to pay up as soon as they made it to civilization.

The man didn’t protest, even if he did seem surprised that she was fully prepared to follow them. In fact, except for Percival, they all tried to dissuade her, but really, she wasn’t stupid.

They might be on some crazy quest to save the world or some shite like that, but there was safety in numbers and she wasn’t about to stay alone waiting to be eaten by some hungry beast.

They gave up trying to change her mind when she started to follow the pet bird who was circling up ahead and let her have the lead, though Harry ran up to her long enough to give her one of his guns before returning to the end of their group, bringing up the rear.

It was still the worst situation she had ever been in, but strangely enough, even as the hair on her body started to rise as they neared the jungle, she felt somehow safe in their company. Not safe enough that she lowered her weapon at any moment, but enough that she didn’t feel the need to turn around and make sure nothing was after them.

Harry would warned them all if there was. 

***

Eggsy barely noticed when they made it to Ahm Shere, finally escaping the man-eating creatures of the jungle. Barely noticed the bracelet finally opening up and falling to the ground, freeing him from its deathly curse.

To be honest, he had barely paid attention to anything since Gazelle had created the wall of water that had destroyed the balloon transporting Harry and Merlin. The only reason he had kept going had been her hard grip on his hand, tugging him along.

He would have been grateful, but he also had no doubt that has soon as the door to the Scorpion King pyramid would open, as soon as he would no longer be of use to her, she would kill him.

He should fight, if only because his mum and baby sister was still waiting for him in London, still in danger from Dean, but even if he was to escape Gazelle and her men, even if he was to survive the jungle again, he wouldn’t survive long in the desert. There was no way he could make it back to civilization, not alone.

But even if he knew that he was about to die, he refused to give Valentine the satisfaction of begging for his life. And so, he kept his gaze fixed on the barrel of the shaking gun only flinching away when the sound of a gunshot pierced the morning air.

The pain he was expecting never came however, only more gunshots, ones that were not coming from Valentine. Which could mean only one thing: he wasn’t hallucinating the last surviving lackeys dropping to the ground like flies after each bang and more importantly, that Merlin yelling out his name wasn’t part of an elaborate deathbed fantasy. 

It was probably stupid to turn his back on someone who was intent on killing him, but if he had learned one thing about Valentine, it was that the man was a coward who would undoubtedly run to Gazelle at the first sign of danger.

He was proved right when he distantly heard the sound of someone dashing away as he turned toward Merlin, but he couldn’t care less. Because in front of him it was not only _Merlin_ , but it was also _Harry_ and he could barely believe his own eyes.

They were _alive_!

 _Somehow_ these two madmen were _alive_ and had never given up on Harry’s promise to keep him safe. 

As soon as the shock of seeing them again wore off, he started running in their direction, unwilling to spend one more minute away from them.

He noticed too late the look of absolute horror on their face.

By that time, he was already within arm’s reach and before he could react in any way, Merlin grabbed him and twisted them around.

He was now facing Gazelle and Valentine in the distance and it took him a moment to connect the gun he was still holding to the gunshot he had just heard.

Took him a moment to understand why Merlin suddenly collapsed against him, making them both fall to the ground, Eggsy hard on his arse, the other man in his lap.

Harry had no trouble making these connections however and he was kneeling besides them in a matter of seconds, repeating Merlin’s name over and over again, shaking him gently, but to no avail.

Eggsy could have told him it was useless, that the body he was holding was already lifeless, but it seemed as if his voice had been stolen from him.

He was just as powerless to stop Harry from going after Gazelle and Valentine into the pyramid of Ahm Shere. He could only cling to Merlin, the shock of everything that had happened in the past few days finally catching up to him and leaving him paralyzed.

He nearly punched James in the face when the man took Harry’s place what seemed an eternity later but couldn’t have been more than a minute.

“James- Merlin, he- I-” He wanted to explain, to somehow make sense of it all, but there was no sense to make of death.

He jumped when James wrapped him in a tight hug, before feeling himself relax into it, his tears now freely rolling down his cheeks.

He couldn’t say what was the most disturbing to him, the comforting contact from a man who wasn’t quite a friend or the devastation on his usually cheerful face.

He tried to find something to say again, because James had just lost his brother. Eggsy simply did not understand how he could find it in himself to be the one offering comfort at the moment.

Had their position been reversed, had it been Daisy who was lying in his arms, he would have been raging against Heaven, Hell and everything in between.

Not that he was unaffected about Merlin. He just could not process it yet. It barely felt real.

He could now understand why even after being cursed, Gazelle had never stopped trying to bring her lover back to life.

Back to her.

He gasped as a realisation hit him, shaking James off of him, but being careful not to jostle Merlin too much. “The book! Valentine had that book! Book of the Dead or something! We can save him!”

He feared for a moment that James wouldn’t know what he was talking about, but he had barely closed his mouth that the other man was helping him back on his feet before bending down to lift Merlin in his arms.

“There’s not a moment to waste! The others have already followed Harry inside, but we can probably catch up with them!”

Eggsy had no idea who those ‘others’ were, but surely, they would help them take the book from Valentine.

It turned out that they would be in even more luck than that because they soon stumbled upon Valentine who was cowering in front of a young woman Eggsy had never seen in his life before. Since he was being held at gunpoint, he offered very little resistance when Eggsy snatched the book from him. It was hard being so close to the horrid man without killing him, but Merlin took priority on everything. Anyway, judging by the contempt with which she was looking at him, the young woman wouldn’t let Valentine escape before he got his due.

Eggsy quickly looked through the book for the right spell as he returned to James who was carefully laying Merlin down on the ground. Another time, he might have been amazed as to just how much he had picked up under Merlin and Harry’s tutelage, how easy it was for him to read the hieroglyphs thanks to them.

Another time, Merlin wouldn’t be lying dead in front of him.

He started the incantation only to be interrupted by the young woman’s exclamation.

“What the-!?” the rest of it got lost under the loud bang of her gun.

If she had shot Valentine, Eggsy didn’t really cared, but the swears that followed made him look up from the book and he nearly fell back on his are in horror at the sight of the jackal-headed beings that were advancing towards them.

“What the fuck is this?”

“I think they’re part of Anubis’ army?”

It would make sense, but it also meant that they were most probably doomed.

Surprisingly, James was more determined to stand his ground as ever. “Don’t stop reading, Roxy and I will buy some time.”

The young woman, Roxy apparently, didn’t seem too pleased to have been volunteered without being consulted first, but unlike Valentine, she didn’t flee from the supernatural warriors.

He wasted some precious seconds looking at the fight, amazed at James and Roxy’s skills when they threw their empty guns to the floor in favor of the sword-like weapons held by the many statues in the room. Unfortunately, every time one of the jackal warrior burst into sand, two more seemed to take its place. If they wanted to survive this encounter, they would need to run away soon. Which they could only do if Merlin was alive to run with them.

He started reading again, not letting himself doubt his pronunciation. Harry and Merlin had taught him well and if he was going to do one good thing in his wretched life, it would be to bring Merlin back to life.

He was at the very last symbol, when he finally got stuck, not remembering what the bird on the page meant.

James must have had noticed his silence, because he called out his name with some urgency.

“I can’t figure out the last one!”

“What does it look like?”

“It’s a bird… A stork I think!”

“Oh! I know that one!” For a second, Eggsy thought he would have to ask again, but when he glanced in James direction, he realised that the man had just been trying to not get skewered by a spear.

“Ahmenophus! It’s ahmenophus!”

He started the incantation again, his tongue not tripping on the strange words even once.

As soon as he was finished, Merlin gasped for air, his eyes looking wild until they fell on Eggsy. They filled with a warm fondness that Eggsy had never felt more undeserving of than before.

He would probably have started crying from sheer relief, but James and Roxy were being pushed back to them, finally overrun by the warriors. Instead, he helped Merlin to his feet and urged him to run, their hands firmly clasped together.

*

Saving the world was the last thing on Harry’s mind as he ran after Valentine and Gazelle into the pyramid. What he wanted was to kill Valentine with his bare hands and watch as all life left him.

What he wanted was to shoot Gazelle in the back and make Valentine feel the same anguish of having his lover torn away from him.

That she wouldn’t actually die from mortal wounds was the only thing that stopped him from wasting ammunitions on her.

His murderous rage had calmed down a bit by the time Percival and Roxy caught up to him. Not by much, but enough that he could realise that rushing in after Valentine and Gazelle with no idea of where he was heading probably wasn’t a good idea.

He would have his revenge, but he couldn’t forget his promise to Eggsy. He _would_ keep him safe and bring him back to his family, even if he had to die trying.

In fact, it probably would be the last thing he ever did if he couldn’t stop Gazelle from raising the Scorpion King.

For that, he would have to get to her first, something that was proving rather difficult now that Valentine had remembered he had a gun and had started shooting at them again.

Admittedly, Harry had very nearly ran into the gunfire mindlessly, not wanting to let Gazelle get too far ahead, but Percival had caught him by the back of his shirt and dragged him behind a column before he could be hurt.

“At least wait until he runs out of bullets! You cannot stop Gazelle if you’re dead!”

He had apparently yelled loud enough for Valentine to hear him too, because the man started laughing darkly.

“Fools! No one can stop her! She’ll do exactly as I say!”

His laughter died out quickly however when Roxy creeped out from behind a statue and kicked the gun out of his hand.

“Go! I’ll make sure this one stays right where he is!”

Harry was tempted to tell her she should simply shoot him, but if he was honest, he’d rather spend a few hours alone with him after he had taken care of Gazelle. For his crime, he deserved a much more personal touch than a simple bullet through the head.

It was a good thing Percival was following him when they finally found Gazelle, because Harry was an inch away from tripping into one of the large cracks in the ground that ran through the room. They seemed bottomless and he had the very distinct feeling that he didn’t want to be better acquainted with whatever creatures were trapped in there, reaching for the edge.

There was no time to waste on that however, not when a roar echoed into the room, right before the one Harry presumed to be the Scorpion King appeared in front of them. He could have been wrong of course, but there was something about a man who became scorpion from the waist down that left very little doubts about his identity.

He cursed darkly when Gazelle said something to the King and his attention turned to them, his expression growing ferocious, eyes alight with a violent gleam.

Whatever she had told him, Harry was sure it wouldn’t be helpful to them.

*

Unlike Valentine, Gazelle had been unconcerned when Anubis had stripped her from most of her powers as she had crossed one of the arch deep into the pyramid.

Soon, she would prove herself worthy of leading the god’s army and gain incommensurable powers that would put her old ones to shame.

Soon, she would offer her lover the world on a silver platter.

Even the sight of the half-man half-scorpion being she needed to defeat didn’t frighten her.

She simply refused to fail this time.

Even the thrice-cursed Hart and his friend the Medjai were too late now that the Scorpion-King had been raised. They might try to kill him themselves and command the army back to the sand from whence they came, but Gazelle would not let that actually happen.

Instead, she directed the Scorpion King’s fury towards them, using them as the only thing they were good for. Bait.

She might have felt bad for her treacherous behaviour since for all their faults, she still respected them as the warriors they were. On the other hand, they _were_ keeping Valentine hostage in another room.

Or not.

She smiled when she saw her lover rush into the room, unarmed. He must have defeated that foolish girl Hart had left behind to guard him.

His face turned horrified when he finally saw the Scorpion King in the flesh and it became the only incentive Gazelle needed to kill him. Her Prince’s desires were her only commands and she did not need to be told to know he wanted the King out of his sight.

She jumped into the fray, not caring about the Scorpion King’s roar of betrayal when she succeeded in stabbing him. It wasn’t enough to kill him, but he was now weakened enough for a killing blow.

Unfortunately, while she had expected Hart and the Medjai to fight her as well, she hadn’t thought that the King would raise some of his army and direct them against her.

She escaped their swords, but lost her advantage, wasting precious minutes returning them to sand.

When she finally turned back to the real fight, it was just in time to see Hart throw a spear at the Scorpion King in a fatal hit. The King fell into one of the cracks, becoming another one of the damned that would never again escape the underworld and Gazelle yelled in rage.

Unfortunately, as she started running to kill Hart once and for all, the pyramid started shaking all around them, the Scorpion King’s death triggering its collapse. She lost her footing and fell into one of the cracks, thankfully grasping the edge just in time. Had she still possessed all of her powers, she could have escaped easily, but she could feel the damned souls’ hunger for her.

“Harry! Hold on, we’re coming!”

She was unsurprised to see Merlin alive.

She had always known that the people that wanted to stop her were hypocrites who would use the magic of the Book of the Dead for their own selfish reasons. Of course they would see no problem in resurrecting one of their own without suffering any repercussions, while she had been cursed for attempting the same.

How was her love any different than theirs?

It wasn’t, that was the answer and she ignored Merlin and the boy rushing to help Harry out of the same situation she was in.

She extended a hand toward Valentine instead, knowing he would help her. She might have failed this time again, but it was but a temporary setback. Together, they were unstoppable.

Or so she had always thought.

Valentine, still looking horrified and for the first time showing the contempt he had always felt for her, turned his back on her and left her to her fate.

It hurt worse than being stabbed, worse than the Hom-Dai, knowing that what she thought had been shared loved turned out to have been a lie all along. Broken-hearted, she whispered his name for one last time.

She let go of the edge, knowing that she no longer had anything to live for, even the thought of vengeance leaving her only with the taste of ashes on her tongue. 

* 

It wasn’t because she didn’t want to help Harry out of the pit he had fallen into that Roxy stayed behind. It was simply that Merlin and Eggsy seemed to have his rescue well under control. She would just be in the way.

But staying behind, looking around anxiously as the ground shook and the ceiling fell apart around them, gave her a front row seat to the drama unfolding between the one that was supposed to be a mummy and her reincarnated lover.

She realised what was going to happen before Valentine even started turning his back on Gazelle, realised that the selfish prick would break the heart of the woman who had defied death itself for him. That coward who had let her do all the dirty work couldn’t even help her the only time she needed him.

And sure, Gazelle had committed crimes in her first life, but from Percival’s description of the Hom-Dai, she had more than paid for them. And if she had wanted to rule the world now, it had only been at the behest of that poor excuse of a man.

By the time Valentine had been crushed under a slab of rock in a adjoining hallway and Gazelle had let go of the edge, Roxy was right there, grabbing the other woman by the wrist.

Pulling her up proved a bit tricky especially since Gazelle was doing nothing to help herself, but Roxy refused to give up. She might have tried to kill them all, but no one deserved to die after such a betrayal. She would show Gazelle what a decent human being was if it was the last thing that she did. 

She was a bit shocked when James and Percival came to help her too, but grateful nonetheless. They might all come to regret their good action, but at least, they would still be able to look at their own reflections. 

Back onto her feet, Gazelle looked so young in her confusion and pain, _too_ young even, and only the rocks falling around them stopped Roxy from wrapping her into a hug. There was a time for such things and it would be after they got out of this bloody pyramid alive.

Luckily, Gazelle didn’t need to be prompted into running even if Roxy kept a firm hold on her hand, just in case she decided that being crushed to death would be a better fate for her.

The relief she felt when they got outside was very short-lived when she realised that they were stucked in what seemed like a tornado of sand, trees and those horrid creatures that had populated the jungle.

The winds were far too strong to hope they could escape, but it seemed to shake Gazelle out of her shocked state.

“The top of the pyramid! Climb to the top!”

Merlin and Harry made an hilarious double-take when they realised just who had talked, but Eggsy was already tugging on their hands, having absolutely no hangs-up at listening to Gazelle if it meant surviving.

The climb was harder than she thought it would be, but they somehow managed it. The tornado had turned into a proper sandstorm at that point, quickly covering the pyramid. She truly feared for their lives for a moment, until she realised there seemed to be an invisible bubble around them, protecting them from the worst of it. One look at the woman frowning in concentration next to her sufficed to understand who she had to thank for that.

A small eternity later, the winds finally died down and only the very tip of the pyramid could be seen and she had no doubt that even that would probably be lost in no time.

“Why help us?” Percival wasn’t even trying to hide how suspicious he was, but at least, he had not drawn any weapon on Gazelle.

“She saved me. She owns my life now.” She didn’t seemed to mind her new fate much as she kept staring in Roxy’s direction, her visage softened by awe.

Roxy grimaced at the idea of owning anyone, but she decided she would have enough time to make Gazelle realise she was her own woman once they would be out of the desert.

*

Night had fallen around them as they were waiting for Percival’s fellow medjai to find them with spare horses. What could have spelled their doom turned out not being so bad when they could rely on a mummy’s powers to keep predators at bay and the fire burning with little to no combustibles.

Not that Merlin had stopped feeling wary about having Gazelle as an ally, but she did seemed to be only interested in Roxy and her happiness.

It was a bit disturbing, but Merlin couldn’t bring himself to say anything when all of Roxy’s nice gestures towards Gazelle were met with a delighted gasp and a hungry, but still suspicious look. In a way, she reminded him of Eggsy when he had finally started to trust them.

Or Eggsy right now in fact.

Even if he had followed them when they had all separated into smaller groups for the night, he had stayed oddly silent. He had barely even looked at them as they were settling down.

Merlin might have thought it meant they had been wrong about Eggsy’s open-mindedness when presented with the reality of two men more or less cuddling, but whenever his gaze landed on Percival and James doing much of the same a little distance away, his expression turned into anguished yearning.

Before he could say anything however, Harry sighed next to his ear and disentangled himself from their hug. He got on his feet and went to Eggsy, silently offering him a hand.

Another day, Merlin would have protested about losing Harry’s warmth, even if it was only for a short period of time, but Eggsy took priority on his own comfort at the moment.

The lad had never looked so hesitant, his eyes shining with fear when he glanced at Merlin, as if he didn't think Merlin was of the same mind as Harry when it came to him. He inclined his head in subtle encouragement, something uncoiling deep inside of his chest when Eggsy finally took Harry’s hand and got engulfed into a warm hug.

Merlin chuckled softly when Eggsy yelped at being lifted into Harry’s arms only to be dumped into his lap, but at least the lad didn’t try to get away.

When Harry sat beside them and wrapped them both into his arms, Eggsy still didn’t resist, just hid his face against the hollow of Merlin’s throat.

“I’m sorry…”

He shivered at the words mumbled against his skin, but it was Harry who spoke up first.

“What for?”

“Everything? Stealing from you, lying to you, putting you in danger, getting Merlin-” his voice broke off at that point and Harry tightened his hold around them without saying anything.

Merlin didn’t remember much of that moment except knowing that Valentine was about to shoot Eggsy and knowing he couldn’t let that happened. However, him not remembering didn’t mean it hadn’t happened. It was something that both Eggsy and Harry would have to learn living with and Merlin would be damned if he ever made light of it. He leaned closer to Harry, his fingers sliding up his shoulder to cup the back of his neck, and he dared to press his lips against Eggsy’s temple, humming softly in comfort.

Eggsy shivered at the contact, but Merlin felt his hand clutch harder onto his shirt. He chanced a look at Harry and fell in love all over again at how he was looking at them, eyes soft but his jaw set in determination, as if he was about to take on Anubis army all by himself just to keep them safe.

“We’ve just saved the world, why aren’t we kissing yet?” He hadn’t really planned on saying anything, but the words had blurted out of his mouth before he could stop them.

“I will give you so much more than just a kiss,” Harry huffed in amusement and then he kissed him chastely. It wasn’t long before he broke away, turning to press his lips against Eggsy’s just in time to silence the lad’s surprised gasp.

He kept their kiss short even though Eggsy chased after Harry for a second before he realised what he was doing. He froze in place, a blush spreading on his cheeks, his head lowered in consternation.

Merlin was very gentle when he turned his face towards him, but couldn’t resist brushing his thumb lightly against Eggsy’s lower lip. He really didn’t seem adverse to the situation, but Merlin still had to make sure before kissing him in turn.

“You’d stop us if it wasn’t something that you want, wouldn’t you?”

“Please…” Merlin pressed their lips together without further encouragement, letting go of Eggsy only so that Harry could kiss them both again, but this time with more intent.

They did not do much more than simply kiss under the stars that night, but Merlin wouldn’t trade that promise of a new beginning for anything in the world.

They were finally where they belonged.

Together.


End file.
